Greasing device



e. w. PHILLE OH GREASING DEVICE APPLICATION FILED FEB. 24. 19!?- Patented Sept, 30, 1919.

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a o 1 o W/T/VESSES A 1101mm GREASING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 24. i917 Patented Sept. 30, 1919.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE WEST PHILLEO, OF LEADVILLE, COLORADO, ASSIGNOR TO AMERICAN SMELTIN'G & REFINING COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

GREASING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 30, 1919.

To all whom it may concern: Be it known that I, GEORGE WEST PHILLEo, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Leadville, in the county of Leadville and State of Colorado, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Greasing Devices, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a lubricating device of general application but particularly designed for use in greasing the track engaging surfaces of traveling members where the track and members are subjected to intense drying conditions such as are formed in a sintering machine.

In sintering machines of Dwight and Lloyd type, it is usual to deposit a charge of the ore to be sintered on an endless chain of traveling pallets, and after igniting the charge to cause the pallets to pass along tracks and over series of wind or vacuum boxes arranged to draw the combustion zone of the ignited ore charge downward through the same. Any grease or other lubricant which may be applied manually to the pallets or tracks quickly dries and much difficulty has been experienced in maintaining the pallets and their engaging portion of the track sufliciently lubricated. Under present methods there is a material waste of the lubricating substance; it collects in spots or runs over the side of the tracks and requires the attention of some one to maintain the parts sufliciently lubricated and otherwise the old methods are expensive and inconvenient.

-Accordingly, one of the objects of the invention is to provide a simple form of lubrieating device for applying a lubricant auto- 40 matically to the wearing surface between the tracks and the pallets. Another object is to provide means for supplying the lubricant in economic quantities and distributed in such a manner as to maintain just the necessary lubricated condition to the parts even in the presence of the rapidly evaporating conditions incidental to a heating machine such as the sintering machines;

Another object of the invention is to pro vide a lubricating device of the plunger feed type which is simple in structure, formed of relatively few parts, which can be readily demounted for re-charging or for repairing and each charging element of which will become inoperative automatically when the lubricant has been discharged therefrom.

Incidental to the desire to rovide a simple form of lubricating device which will distribute the lubricant economically, a further object is to provide a construction which can be readily installed upon the sintering machine and which can be actuated from the same mechanism which drives the pallets along the track.

Various other objects and advantages of the invention will be in part obvious from an inspection of the accompanying drawings and in part will be more fully set forth in the following particular description of one form of mechanism embodying my invention, and the invention also consists in certain new and novel features of construction and combination of parts hereinafter set forth and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a view in side elevation showing part of a Dwight and Lloyd sintering machine with a preferred embodiment with my invention installed thereon;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the device shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a view in side elevation of a bank of lubricating grease cups shown in reduced scale in Fig. 1; V

Fig. 4c is a view taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a plan view looking down on the device shown in Fig. 3, and

Fig. 6 is an enlarged view showing the eccentric of Fig. 2.

In the drawing there is shown a conventional form of Dwight and Lloyd sintering machine, including a pair of upper tracks or runways 10, for the endless chain of pallets 11 which are caused to move along the tracks and over wind or vacuum box 12 by a suitable driving mechanism 13, all as is usual with devices of this character.

The machine is provided with a lubricating device of the slow feed plunger type arranged to discharge the lubricant through the tracks and into the path of the moving pallets ata plurality of points. 1 1 spaced along the length of the tracks'a distance depending, among other considerations, upon the lubricant drying conditions present in the normal actuation of a sintering machine of the class described.

Each of these points 14: is connected by means of a conduit 15 with one of a bank of grease cups in the form of cylinders 16 mounted on the machine in a position convenient for receiving a recharge of lubricant asthe cups are exhausted. These cups are shown in a position so as tominimize undue heating thereof by the burning ore,

"although it is to beunderstood that/if some heavy form of grease is used as a lubricant, it may be desirable to install the grease cups at some warm portion of the machine so as to facilitate an easy flow of the grease to the usual points of application along the length of the tracks. All of these grease cups are similar in construction so that a detailed description of any one cup will be sufficient for any one in the bank. The grease cups illustrated are made from inch cold drawn tubing opened at opposite ends and threaded internally throughout their length with threads of relatively low pitch. An ejecting plunger 17 preterably'a brass plug is threaded to fit in the cylindrical cups and is mounted on a square cold rolled bar constituting a stem 18 which is passed through a squared opening in a bushing 19 rotatably mounted in a guiding sleeve 20 coacting with the bushing to. close one end of the cylinder. The opposite end constitutes a wide open inlet for charging the grease cup and is closed by means of a plug 21 demountably threaded into the inlet end; The lubricant receiving end of the conduit 15 is threaded into the side of the cup adjacent the plugged end and is so arranged that the conduit and cup may be separated readily.

The plunger is rotated and thus advanced slowly through the grease cup by means of a pawl and ratchet feed actuated from the drivingmechanism13. This connection includes a ratchet wheel 22 provided with a relatively large number of teeth fixed to the bushing 19. The pawl 23 of the feed is pivoted on ashaft 2 1 rotatably mounted in a rocker arm 25 mounted for oscillating movement about the axis of rotation of the plunger and its stein. Each 01" the'ratchet wheels are normally held from rotation in the opposite direction by means or retaining pawl 26 such as are usually found in pawl and ratchet feed mechanisms. The rocker arm has an extension 27 provided with aslot 28 extending lengthwise therein and in a line passingthrough the axis of rotation of the plunger. The several exten- .means of a connecting rod 32 one endoit' which is pivotally connected with the rod 31 and the opposite end or which is actuated by an eccentric 33, mounted upon the shaft Setwhich in turn is actuated through reducing gears 35 from the pallet driving mechanism 13. T

The shaft 21 carrying the pawl is provided with a laterally extending lug 36 and the outer end of the stem 18 is provided with a crank arm 37 designed, at the end of the movement of the plunger in the grease cup to swing into engagement with the lug 36 and thus swing the pawl'into an inoperative position disengaged from the ratchet wheel. The crank arm 37 is provided with a handle 38 by means of which the plunger may be re-rotated into its initial position to receive a fresh charge or the lubricant. 7

In operation, andwith the grease cups charged with a suitable lubricant, the driving mechanism for the pallets mu act grease cups with'a slow step by step mo-vement thus forcing the lubricant through the conduits to their several points of application along the track of'the sintering machine.

Should it be desired to vary the rate of the feed of lubricant, at any point-relative to the rate of movement of the traveling pallets the nuts holding the roller pin'QQ in position are loosened and the roller pin moved along the slot thus. varying the arc of movement and accordingly the number of teeth out the ratchet engaged by the pawl at each actuation of the reciprocating rod.

As any plunger approaches the discharge end of its grease cup, the rotating crank arm 37 is brought into engagement with the lug 36 and acts thereon to rotate the same in a direction to move the pawl into position disconnecting the same from the ratchet wheel and thus lntercept ng the operation of any exhausted cup forming a part of the lubrlcating devlce. When the pawl is in disconnected position the plungermay be re-:

then be opened with a spanner wrench andnew charge of lubricant [inserted in the saving in the cost of operation over the,

methods previously used on these sintering machines. The lubricant obviously may be applied at as many points as desired so that a constant supply is insured even under the extreme heat conditions present in these machines. The rate of feed is usually regu lated so that just the requisite amount is supplied to afford the necessary lubrication under the variable conditions of service to which such machines are subjected from time to time and individual adjustment of the supply to any one point is provided.

The several parts are such as can be made in any machine shop and do not require any special stock or tools for this construction. The conventional form of sintering machine does not have to be modified to permit of the installation of such a lubricating device and the necessary power is conveniently available from the pallet driving mechanism.

\Vhile I have shown and described, and

have pointed out in the annexed claims, certain novel features of my invention, it will be understood that various omissions substitutions and changes in the form and details of the device illustrated and in its operation may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus described my invention I claim:

1. In a sintering machine, the combination with a track for supporting the traveling pallets and power mechanism for actuating the pallets, of a lubricating device havlng a discharge end opening through the pallet engaging surface of the track, said device including a reservoir for the lubricant, a

conduit connecting said reservoir with said discharge end and pressure creating mechanisms operatively connected to said power mechanisms to be actuated thereby for feeding the lubricant in a solid stream from the reservoir through said conduit and track.

2. In a sintering machine, the combination with a track, a series of pallets mounted to travel on said track, and means for driving said pallets, of a reservoir for a lubricant, and means geared to said pallet driving means for feeding the lubricant slowly from the reservoir to the traveling pallets.

3. In a sintering machine, the combination with a track, a series of pallets mounted to travel on said track and meansjincludin'g a reducing ear train for, moving the pallets, of means actuated by said pallet-moving-means for feeding a lubricant to the trackengaglng surface of the pallets, whereby the lubricant will be fed to the track at a rate proportionate to the rate of travel of the pallets on the track.

4:. In va sintering machine,-the combination with a track, a series of pallets mounted to travel on said track, means positioned at one end of the machine for moving the pallets, of means actuated by said pallet-moving-means for feeding a lubricant to the track engaging surface of the pallets, and means for regulating the rate of lubricant feed per unitof travel of the pallet moving means. v

5. In a sintering machine, the combination with a track for supporting pallets and driving mechanism for moving the pallets along the track, of a lubricating device provided with means for feeding a lubricant to the pallets at a plurality of points spaced along the length of the track and means mechanically coupled to and actuated from said pallet moving mechanism for feeding the lubricant.

6. In a sintering machine, the combination with a track for supporting pallets and mechanism for moving the pallets along the track, of a lubricating device driven directly by said mechanism and provided with a plurality of means for feeding a lubricant to the pallets at a plurality of points spaced along the length of the track, said feeding mians being operatively independent of each 0t er.

7. A lubricating device including a tubular member for containing the lubricant, a plunger threaded in said member so as to advance the plunger in the member by the rotation of the plunger, a pawl and ratchet feed for rotating the plunger, and means controlled by the position of the plunger in the member acting directly on the pawl to swing the same into an inoperative position relative to the ratchet.

8. A lubricating device, including a tubular member for containing the lubricant, an ejecting plunger mounted for longitudinal movement in said member, means for actuating the plunger, said means including a pawl and ratchet feed, and means movable with the plunger for engaging the pawl to .lu fixed t0 the awl to swingthe same, Vancouver and Province efi'British Cel ummeans movablewith the plunger for engagbia, Canada,- this twenty-fourth day of J aning the lug to move the pawl into an inopernary A. D.,- 1 917. r V ative position relative to the ratchet as the GEORGE WEST PHILLEO plunger approaches the end of its travel in Witnesses: 1 the member. M. P. MAGGILLIVRAY,

' Signed at Vancouver, in the county of P. J. MCINTYRE Copies of this patent may be obtained or'flve eents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents; Washington, D. G. 

